With the weather wavering between warmer and cooler, I made Chinese BBQ Yuba Ribs on one of the cooler days. Before the warmer days really kick in and I shut down the oven for the summer.
Chinese BBQ also known as char siu or cha siu is a type of Cantonese roasted meat and a method of cooking – strips of seasoned meat roasted in an oven. The marinade sauce is what actually gives char siu its distinctive taste and color. Apply the sauce to yuba strips or seitan and you have a vegan version of char siu.
Some recipes call for red food coloring to give it that bright red char siu color, I prefer not to use food coloring so the yuba ribs are more brown than reddish. Oil-free too. Chewy and meaty in texture with Asian flavors of Chinese 5-spice and ginger, it’s sweet and salty.
Chinese BBQ Yuba Ribs
Makes 4-5 servings
1 6-ounce package dried bean curd sticks
1/2-inch piece of ginger root, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons Chinese 5-spice
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
Soak the dried bean curd sticks in water for a few hours until soft. Drain and squeeze out any water. Cut into 4-6 inch lengths. If there’s any hard pieces, usually on the ends or where it folds, cut those off (the cut off hard pieces can be saved and used to make jook).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with tin foil.
In a large bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients to make the sauce. Set aside one-third of the sauce. Toss in the bean curd sticks and coat in the sauce and place on the baking sheet in a single layer.
Bake for 15 minutes, then flip over and coat with the remaining sauce. Bake for another 10 minutes. Serve with rice or noodles and a side vegetable.
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Considering how much I love yuba, even I’m surprised that I do so little with it in its dried format. This looks like such a delicious, easy, and highly gratifying gateway to enter into that field. That said, I bet the sauce would be dynamite on the fresh sheets to create more of a pulled pork texture, too.
The nice thing about the dried version is that it’s way cheaper than the fresh kind. A pulled pork style yuba does sound good though. :-)
Yees! That’s how they make it at The Butcher’s Son, too. Topped with slaw and caramelized onions in their pulled pork sandwich, it’s crazy delicious. One of my favorite things on their menu.
Looks amazing.
Sorry to ask, but have you tried using fresh yuba sheets?
I prefer to eat GMO free or organic soy, and can only find fresh sheets that cover that.
Ended up making this with very firm and well drained tofu.
While I am sure the texture is very different, the flavours of the sauce were amazing.
I haven’t tried fresh yuba with this particular recipe. Dried yuba seems like it’s firmer after rehydrating compared to fresh. I prefer non-GMO and organic too so I only get the dried yuba every once in awhile.
Thanks for trying out the recipe, so glad it worked with firm tofu. :-)
Why did I not know about this? Our yuba always ends up in miso soup, but now I want yuba ribs! The bean curd sticks we buy are skinny — no more than an inch in diameter. Is that what you started with or do you buy a different shape?
I use yuba in soup too but in jook (congee). Yes, the dried bean curd sticks I used are skinny and round, after soaking they flatten out.
If I could give you a round of applause right now, I would. I had this about a million years ago in China, or something very like it, and it was amazing. I’ve never seen a recipe for it so I’ve never tried to make it at home. Now, the scales have been lifted from my eyes and I see yuba in my future!
I’ve yet to see yuba ribs in any restaurant around these parts. Fortunately, they’re pretty easy to make. If you get a chance, give them a try. :-)
From CT and have never come across this product. Where can I purchase?
You can usually find it at the Asian supermarket.
I love yuba so much and these look super perfect. cantonese is one of my favourite cuisines and I bet this would taste delicious stuffed inside some steamed dough!
Just made these and they are sooo yummy!!! Yuba is one of my favourite proteins! I’m really loving your blog…beautiful pics and amazing recipes!!!
Thanks for trying out the recipe and so happy you like it! Yuba is the best! :-)
What is the Chinese 5 spice? I haven’t seen it in Asian stores ?.
It’s a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel, star anise and Szechwan peppercorns. I’ve seen it in the spice section at the Asian supermarket and at some regular supermarkets too. If you can’t find it in the stores, you can always search for a recipe online to make your own Chinese 5 spice. :-)